Seth Tupper has always been a storyteller.

 It’s revealing the untold stories of the unique people and places of South Dakota, especially West River, that has kept him in a rollercoaster industry for more than 20 years.

 “To me, this is one of the most interesting places in the world – the scenery, the history, settlers and Native Americans, Deadwood, the forest and mining issues, public lands, the military, and the history of the Air Base – it is endless, and it is fascinating,” Seth said of life in western South Dakota. “There is news everywhere you turn.”

 A South Dakota native, Seth grew up in the small East River towns of Wessington Springs and Kimball before making his way west. He started his journalism career by doing nearly everything at South Dakota State University’s student-run independent newspaper, The Collegian. With no faculty advisor, Seth and his fellow newsies started each school year figuring out what equipment, if any, they had. “It was crazy, but it was great. We learned a lot about journalism.”

 The staff also learned a lot about troubleshooting in a business where meeting a deadline is everything. One time when computers crashed, the team used a photographer’s iMac and did the paste-up on the patio window, Seth said. “We had to get the paper out.”

 Seth started covering sports and worked his way up to editor-in-chief, even recruiting his now wife, Shelly, to the sports staff. During his senior year, he interned with the South Dakota Newspaper Association covering the legislative session – a beat he has always been passionate about. “I enjoy working on public policy and politics and am really into the accountability piece.”

 He has covered local, state, and national political issues throughout his career. He interviewed Barak Obama during his primary stop at the Corn Palace, reported on the Bernie Sanders presidential rally, and covered the national Tom Daschle/John Thune Senate race. “It was the biggest race in the country at the time.”

 In 2021, he won a national Edward R. Murrow Award, one of the most prestigious in news, for his investigative reporting on the pollical and environmental ramifications of fireworks displays at Mount Rushmore National Memorial.

 He spent 18 years in newspapers, from the Daily Globe in Worthington, Minn., to The Mitchell Daily Republic. And finally, the Rapid City Journal, which brought him and his outdoor-loving family to the Black Hills. While working at the Journal, Seth reported on a wide range of subjects but was especially drawn to issues surrounding mining, public lands, and the U.S. Forest Service. He traveled to an underground mine, reported on the rebuilding of buttes in Northwest South Dakota, interviewed ranchers, and did a Saturday series, Eight over Seven, exploring the area’s highest peaks.

 “There are just so many interesting land and environmental issues in this area.”

 While Seth can’t see himself doing anything else, the instability of the newspaper industry has caused him to question the future of journalism. “We saw this whole decline in the newsroom, cutbacks, people cutting their print editions. For a while, I didn’t know if there would be a future in it for me.”

 However, in 2020, Seth left newspapers and joined South Dakota Public Broadcasting as a supervising senior producer. “South Dakota Public Broadcasting was creating jobs, and I just saw an opportunity.”

He enjoyed the new challenge of reporting news and working with audio and television. “It was fun and a nice change of pace. I learned a whole new side of journalism.”

 He also learned that people still valued quality reporting.

 SDPB recently raised $13 million during a capital campaign. “It really fascinated me that people were being asked to freely give their support and were doing it. It convinced me that nonprofit news was the future.”

 Which is what convinced Seth to take on his newest opportunity.

 Seth is the editor-in-chief of a new South Dakota website from States Newsroom, a nonprofit focusing on state politics and policies. Initially started in North Carolina, the business model has expanded to 28 other states, with South Dakota part of the organization’s next expansion.

 Seth’s first task is to hire three new reporters. “I am excited to be part of something that is adding jobs back into journalism.”

 Seth has also used his talent for storytelling to write and contribute to three books: Calvin Coolidge in the Black Hills, a story of the 30th president’s summer in South Dakota in 1927; The Black Hills of South Dakota, a travel guidebook published by Fodor’s; and his latest book, Surviving the ’72 Flood, was co-authored with local photographer Johnny Sundby. The book commemorated the 50th anniversary of the 1972 Flood that killed 238 people.

 Seth’s favorite part of being a journalist is the digging, researching, and telling things that people don’t know and sometimes things people don’t want you to know. “It’s all about being part of the process of bringing information to light. We need journalism for democracy.”

 It’s also one of the best ways to get to know your community.

 “I feel like I have gotten to know this area so well through my job. You get to invite yourself into people’s lives and jobs and really immerse yourself in the area.”